Residents who call 1-866-578-5422 are now being given the activation code SCDOR123 that can be used to sign up for free credit monitoring / HEIDI HEILBRUNN / Staff

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Staff report

South Carolina residents who call 1-866-578-5422 are now being given the activation code SCDOR123 that can be used to sign up for free credit monitoring at www.protectmyid.com/scdor.

The message also notes that residents whose data was not affected will be given the option to pay for credit monitoring.

Gov. Nikki Haley is meeting with today to provide an update on the investigation.

On Friday, residents learned that a foreign hacker stole a vast database from the South Carolina Department of Revenue, and investigators told GreenvilleOnline.com that 387,000 credit card numbers and 3.6 million Social Security numbers had been exposed.

All but 16,000 of the credit cards, officials said, were encrypted Ė meaning they were coded against being used by outside groups. But they said they donít know whether hackers could break the encryption.

The remaining number of credit cards are so old, investigators said, that they donít believe they are at risk of being used.

Anyone who has filed a South Carolina tax return since 1998 is immediately being asked to visit protectmyid.com/scdor or call 1-866-578-5422 to determine if their information is affected. The state will provide those affected with one year of credit monitoring and identify-theft protection, officials said.